Character deaths in any media are a point of contention amongst fans. Should authors kill off their characters at all? If they do kill off characters, should it be for a good reason or just shock value? Good writers will unanimously agree that character deaths should never be taken lightly, and they should always serve a purpose.
One of the more common tropes is the potential for a character's death to propel another character to grow, usually the protagonist of the series. There are other narrative functions for character deaths, of course, but there are a lot of anime that contain character deaths that may or may not elicit the protagonist's growth.
10 DID HELP: Kamina's Death Forced Simon To Take Up His Mantle (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann)
Let's face it: Gurren Lagann's Kamina was way too strong of a character to be allowed to survive. Studio Gainax shocked fans the world over when they killed off one of their most popular characters by the eighth episode. But realistically (and narratively) speaking, Kamina didn't have much more room to grow.
He was already capable, confident, and willing to shoot for the stars. It's Simon who needed help growing, but as long as Kamina stayed by his side, Simon would have kept relying on him. Losing Kamina forced Simon to put his priorities into perspective and granted him the ability to get stronger.
9 DIDN'T HELP: Misato's Death Wasn't Enough To Help Shinji (Neon Genesis Evangelion)
During the climactic events at the end of the Evangelion TV anime, Shinji Ikari is on the verge of giving up as he wallows in self-deprecation and fear. But Misato Katsuragi tries to save Shinji anyway and fights her way through gunfire to get him safely to Unit-01.
She takes a fatal wound while trying to help him and uses her dying breath to reassure Shinji, insisting that he should go on living and gifting him her father's cross necklace. This wasn't enough to get Shinji to shape up, unfortunately, and he needed a final nudge from Kaworu and Rei Ayanami to find his resolve to live.
8 DID HELP: Mayuri's & Kurisu's Deaths Pushed Okabe To Do The Unimaginable (Steins;Gate)
While Mayuri Shiina's death in Steins;Gate did motivate Rintaro Okabe to take his chances at finding a worldline where she lives, it wasn't enough to push his entire growth. When he managed to find a worldline where Mayuri lives, it was at the cost of Kurisu's life.
Okabe had grown quite fond of Kurisu and couldn't stand the thought of a world without her, either, which further fed his drive to defy fate. But Okabe almost gave up at his darkest hour, and it was Mayuri who gave him the final nudge to complete Operation Skuld, meaning both girls ultimately pushed him to grow.
7 DIDN'T HELP: Kyoko's Death Actually Held Tohru Back (Fruits Basket)
Tohru Honda in Fruits Basket didn't want to let go of her mother's memory. For Tohru, forgetting about her mother or letting something else take priority meant Kyoko would somehow be left behind. In this sense, Kyoko's death effectively stunted Tohru's ability to grow.
If she'd remained fixated on her mother instead of accepting her feelings for Kyo Sohma, Tohru may have lived a shallow life for others rather than herself. Kyoko wouldn't have been happy with that, so it's good that Tohru used her feelings for Kyo to move past her mother's death and grow.
6 DID HELP: The Kamado Family's Deaths Propel Tanjiro Forward (Demon Slayer)
Although Nezuko Kamado didn't perish with them, Tanjiro Kamado still pulls a lot of strength from his deceased family. If anything, their deaths drive him to become stronger so he can protect his one remaining family member. When either Tanjiro or Nezuko are especially challenged, they draw on strength from the memory of their deceased family and use it as fuel to push through. It's a bit cliched, but the raw emotion is difficult to ignore, especially when Tanjiro uses that memory to surpass his limits.
5 DIDN'T HELP: Misa Was Merely A Pawn On Light's Chess Board (Death Note)
There's no way that Misa Amane's eventual death would have ever fazed Death Note's Light Yagami. In fact, there might not be any kind of death that would propel Light to grow because he already thinks he's perfect, so growth is unnecessary. Nevertheless, it's a bit heartbreaking to know that Light doesn't care about Misa's death. She loved Light so strongly and did so much to help him further his plans, ultimately feeding his God complex in the end.
4 DID HELP: Julia's Death Forced Spike To Finally Confront His Past (Cowboy Bebop)
Avoiding Julia's memory was Spike Spiegel's priority in Cowboy Bebop. After all, she stood him up after he gained the courage to defect from the Red Dragon Syndicate. But even though Spike wanted to forget, she always lingered in the back of his mind - which is why he chose to run away with her again at the end of the series.
Before they could get away, however, Julia was unceremoniously shot to death right in front of Spike's eyes. Julia's death underlined a fact that Spike had been avoiding all this time: he needed to confront Vicious and bring an end to his madness.
3 DIDN'T HELP: Madoka's Death Stunted Homura's Chance To Grow (Puella Magi Madoka Magica)
At face value, it may seem as if Madoka's death encouraged Homura to become stronger. In her determination to prevent Madoka's unfair fate, Homura takes it upon herself to become a better magical girl and try to save her. But that's just on the surface. Underneath, Homura is suffering from a persistent and unhealthy need to be with Madoka no matter the cost. If anything, Madoka's death is holding Homura back from moving forward with her own life.
2 DID HELP: Kaori's Death Became A Source Of Strength For Kosei (Your Lie In April)
While it's true that Kaori Miyazono did a lot for Kosei Arima's spirit while she was still living in Your Lie In April, it's her illness and eventual death that arguably drove her lessons home. Kosei took a lot of inspiration from Kaori's free spirit and love for life, despite the fact that she was standing on Death's proverbial doorstep. She managed to motivate him to do his best in the music performance preceding the fatal surgery that took her life. But she made sure to leave him a letter to give him the strength to keep going.
1 DIDN'T HELP: Kikyo's Death Kept Inuyasha In The Past (Inuyasha)
Kikyo's death was most likely intended to chain Inuyasha down in a sense, to give him flaws that wouldn't allow for him to grow at all. Inuyasha's relationship with Kikyo was special for them, so it makes sense that each of them would be stuck on the other after the fact. But holding onto that relationship wasn't healthy for Inuyasha or Kikyo, and it was best for her to move on to the next world in the end. After all, Kagome is basically Kikyo reborn and she does more to help Inuyasha overcome his past to become a better version of himself.